Route book



Patented Nov. 3, 1925.

UNITED STATES ELMER E. FOREMAN, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO.

ROUTE 1300 Application filed February 19, 1923. Serial No. 619,918.

'1'0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Emmi: E. FOREMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Route Books, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of route books, which are especially adapted for use by dairymen who daily deliver stated quantities of milk to their customers, and has for its particular objects to provide a book wherein a correct record of the accounts of the customers can be kept from day to day, also a list of the customers names and addresses in the consecutive order in which the daily deliveries are made, the notation of the quantity desired by each customer each day, and also a notice when each customer desires to pay his individual account. Other objects. of the improved route book is to provide an identification page, which if the book should be lost, will inform the finder to whom the book belongs, also a page of instructions of how to use the book, which will enable a new employee to easily familiarize himself with the manner of keeping the accounts, and also enable a substitute to take over another mans route should the demand arise without any serious inconvenience to the employers.

These objects are attained by the means illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of an upper portion of one of the improved books in an open position.

Figure 2 is an edge view of the same.

Figure 3 is a view of a detached instruction leaf, and 1 Figure 4 is a similar view of the identification leaf.

Similar reference numerals in all figures of the drawing designate like parts.

In its simplest form, the book comprises a series of leaves 10 of equal width, each leaf being ruled on its rear side a wide name column 11 and a series of narrow columns, the first one of which has at its top end the abbreviation Bal. designating that column as the balance column 12, and the remaining of said narrow column having numerals 1, 2, 3 etc. in consecutive order designating said columns as datecolumns. The front face of each leaf 10 is also ruled to form a series of narrow columns having numerals up to and includ- The leaves are ruled on both sides with a'series of heavy horizontal lines 13-between whlch are formed a series of relatively wide spaces 14 that maybe termed individual account spaces and these spaces are in. continuation from the rear side of one leaf or page to and across the front side of the adjacent leaf or page. These individual account spaces are divided by horizontal lines 15 which form upper and lower spaces in each individual account space, the upper spaces, which may be termed debit-spaces, being used to record.

therein each day the amount due, and the lower spaces, which may be termed creditspaces, being used to record the amount paid any time during the month. Lines 15 are preferably fine lines as distinguished from.

the lines 13, or they might be of a different color from said'lines 13, or be ruled in any manner to show a contrast, but it is understood that the lines forming the individual account spaces must be prominent, so that a user of the book will be able to follow a-single account entirely across the pages.

To avoid making the book too wide, narrow intermediate"lines 16 mounted between the wide leaves 10, and these intermediate leaves are ruled on both sides similar to the other leaves to form the datecolumns and individual account spaces in continuation with other rulings or markings. These intermediate leaves have preferably ruled thereon seven date columns and i are sufficiently wide to extend only to the name-columns, so when each one is folded back against the preceding page, it will not cover any portion of the name-column thereon.

It will be observed that the date columns of the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th days of the month are positioned as the first columns on that side of the intermediate leaves, also the first column on the last page of the account and the first column exposed beyond the edge of the intermediate leaf respectively on said last page. Thus the total amount due for a weekly account from the first day of the month will always appear in one of the columns beginning a section of the accou t.

The wide leaves onlyare numbered preferably on the front sides and in their righthand upper corners, thus dividing the book into a series of account-sections, each of which include the rear face of one main" leaf, both sides of the intermediate leaf and the front face of the next main leaf.

A title page 17 is preferably provided and which on one side is provided withspaces to place the name of the month the book is to be used, thena'm'e' and address of the owner of the book, the name ofthe delivery-man and his route number. Preferably on the opposite side of said title page are printed a list of instructions of how to'use the book, so that a newly employeddelivery-man, or a substitute can take up the route and manage the same without any trouble or coaching.

Several instances of accounts are shown inscribed on the drawings, each of which is different from the others. The first account to Mrs. John Smith, is a daily pint account as indicated by the word Pint placed in the lower space of the balance column,,and

it will be observed that the amounts due gradually increase the price of one pint from day today, until the thirtyfirst day of the month when it amounts to one dollar and eighty-eight cents. The pay time is indicated in the pay-time column as the Last day of month, and it is shown that the account was paid in full on the last day by the credit $1.88 in the lower space of the thirty-first day of this account.

In the case of'th'e' account of A. R. Pratt, which is indicated as a quart daily delivery, the pay-time is indicated asthe First day of the month. In this instance the amount due on the thirty-first day is transferred to the upper spaces of the balance column in the next months account. 7

The next account inscribed, that of R. S. Thompson, is a weekly account, and it will be'observed the account is settled every seventh day from the first day of the month, the credit being marked in the lower or credit spaces and starting e'a'ch eighth day with a new account in the upper spaces, The account of L. A. Lang is an optional payment account, wherein it will be seen the credits are credited in the lower spaces of the fourth, tenth and twenty-ninth columns, and the balances and the amount of the daily supply are debited in the upper spaces of the next column. Thus on the fourth day of the month was paid fifty cents of a seventy-eight cent account, and the balance twenty-eight cents and the daily amount six cents, making thirty-four cents, is carried to the upper space of the next column.

Having thus fully described my invention, what is claimed is An account book comprising a series of wide leaves and a relatively narrow leaf inserted between each pair of said wide leaves, the adjacent face of said wide leaves and both faces of said narrow leaf being ruled with a plurality of vertical columns including a relatively wide name column at the free vertical edge of one of the wide leaves, a plurality of narrow date columns on both sides of the narrow leaf and also on both wide leaves, a balance column between said name column and the first one of said date columns, and a pay-time column at the free vertical edge of the opposite wide leaf, all of said columns being appropriately designated at the top edges of the pages which are also divided by horizontal lines to form individual account spaces extending cont nuously across the rear face of one of said wide leaves and across both faces of said narrow leaf and also across the front face of the next wide leaf,said individual account spaces being subdivided with contrasting lines to form equal size upper and equal size lower spaces throughout the length of the wide columns, and said narrow leaf being sufiiciently wide only to extend to the inner end of the name column when folded back against the name column page, and also each side of the narrow leaf is arranged with only sufficientdate columnsto record an account of one week, so that a weekly debit account can be easily ascertained by glancing at one of the end date columns on the pages. 7

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature. V

i ELMER E. FOREMAN. 

